Farmers again the ‘lockdown’ losers  

While availability of foodgrains, vegetables and fruits is abundant at least for the time being, agriculture experts and the FAO (Food & Agriculture Organisation) have cautioned about a looming crisis if the relaxation in the lockdown from April 20 fail to restore the supply chain. Even prices, which have plunged or remained stable because of the sudden disappearance of bulk demand by hotels, restaurants etc., could also rise later this year. Harvesting and marketing of crops have been hit by the lockdown, noted R. Ramakumar, NABARD Chair Professor, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, in a blogpost, because of

• Disruptions in the procurement of food grains by government agencies;

•  Disruptions in the collection of harvests from the farms by private traders;

•  A shortage of workers to harvest the rabi crop;

•  A shortage of drivers in the transportation sector;

•  Blockades in the movement of agricultural commodities across the major highways;

•  Closure or limited operations of APMC mandis; and shutdowns in the retail agricultural markets.

These factors have led to a crisis in a range of crops too: wheat, grapes, watermelons, bananas, muskmelon, chana, cotton, chillies, turmeric, cumin, coriander, onion, and potato. These bottlenecks have led to a fall in the farm prices.

Tomato growers in Maharashtra are reported to be receiving not even Rs 2 per kg. Grape growers are reported to be facing an aggregate loss of Rs 1000 crore because of the crisis, as demand has fallen. Wheat prices in MP are reported to have fallen from Rs 2200/Q to about Rs 1600/Q by March 25, 2020. For many crops, these prices are also below the Minimum Support Prices announced. In Punjab, vegetables that were sold at Rs 15/kg are reportedly being sold at a mere Rs 1/kg. In Delhi’s mandis, the price of broiler chicken has fallen from Rs 55/kg in January 2020 to Rs 24/kg in March 2020. In Tamil Nadu, egg prices are reported to have fallen from Rs 4/egg to Rs 1.95/egg over the same period.

The return of many migrant workers to their homes has also meant that harvest operations are not taking place smoothly, and many farmers are being forced to leave the crop in the field. Losses to farmers will be the highest in such cases. While mechanical harvesters can be used, lockdown regulations disrupt their free movement. Further, in some places, a shortage of drivers/operators for these harvesters has also been reported. As machine repair shops are closed and mechanics become unavailable for work, spare parts are not easily available, leading to many machines being left unused.

In the rice mills of Kerala, reports indicate a shortage of migrant workers, which has led to these mills not procuring adequate supplies of paddy from farmers. Farmers have either not harvested at all or have harvested and left the product near the fields. Labour shortages are also being experienced in most milk processing plants, cold storage units, and warehouses. According to the Chairperson of AMUL, most milk processing plants are currently operating with half of the labour force. Many workers are not reporting for work or have returned home also because of the fear of police atrocities.

A farmer from Madhya Pradesh posted a poignant message on social media last week. The message was also telling because it was directed at the Prime Minister himself. With too much centralization and a personality cult having grown around the PM, the farmer believed only the PM could secure him permission to take his crop of watermelon to the city and sell.

The farmer said he had taken a loan of Rupees three lakh and if he failed to sell the crop, he would have no choice but to commit suicide. In the absence of clear directions to the district level officials to ensure the movement and marketing of fruits, flowers and vegetables, many farmers in remote areas have found themselves at a dead end. Others living closer to cities and having some access to the market have fared better but have been forced to sell their produce at very low prices.

Sudhir Suryawanshi, son of a farmer, is a journalist based in Mumbai. He called home last week to enquire about the family’s welfare. His father informed him that in the absence of a regular market, where buyers and sellers converge, because of the lockdown, he was forced to sell several quintals of green chilli @10 Rs a Kg. Before the lockdown, he had sold it at @30 Rs a Kg.

Suryawanshi of course paid Rs 70 for green chilli in Navi Mumbai. His experience sums up the plight of farmers, who have been the net losers because of the lockdown, being forced to sell their produce at throwaway prices. Wholesalers and the middlemen are the ones who seem to have exploited the situation to their advantage and made the killing.

The Government did declare agriculture as essential service. But with no clear guidelines percolating to the ground, farmers find it difficult to reach markets or buyers. With buyers too barred from reaching out to the sellers, distress sale of vegetables and fruits have been reported from across the country. Farmers engaged in floriculture have also been hit hard. There are suddenly no buyers for flowers and even the exotic variety which would be exported, have been destroyed.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s decision to allow tea gardens to resume work invited some ill-informed criticism. Experts pointed out that tea plants could not be allowed to stand and wither for a long time, which would adversely impact the soil and the plant alike. In any case tea garden labourers lived close to the plantation and maintaining social distance was not an issue in the sprawling gardens.

When the lockdown began, a Nashik farmers found he was saddled with 40,000 tonnes of grape for which he had no buyer and a loan of Rs 40 lakhs that he had to repay. With markets shut, he couldn’t even procure the chemicals required for drying the grapes into resin.

The lockdown, by stopping most events like weddings and conferences and by shutting down the eateries, restaurants and hotels, choked demand for fruits, flowers and vegetables. Transport bottlenecks and police on the ground broke the supply chain. Prices have crashed with supply outstripping demand. This will have devastating impact on rural economy and farming. With income of farmers dipping, not only depressing demand for consumption but also making it difficult for the farmers to arrange money for the next round of cultivation. They simply have no money to buy seeds, fertilisers, pesticides etc.

I n Punjab and Haryana, where harvesting of the Rabi crop has begun, farmers face an acute shortage of ‘Mandi Labour’ who specialise in the job. Both the state governments have increased the number of collection centres for procurement and have said that they would draft industrial workers to do the work. Haryana has also announced online procurement of grains, which is being resisted by the traders.

Chandigarh based agriculture expert Devinder Sharma told National Herald that both Punjab and Haryana had moved in the right direction and taken the right steps. But whether they are able to implement the plan is what remains to be seen, he points out.

The pandemic has created a shortage of labour in many countries of the world, Sharma added. Even in England, the government is encouraging employees of hotels and restaurants laid off due to the lockdown to move to rural areas and help. Food & Agriculture Organisation (FAO) also noted the worldwide shortage of labour and estimated that France, England and the United States were facing shortage of 200,000, 80,000 and 60,000 seasonal workers respectively following the pandemic. With borders closed, Mexican labour is unable to reach the US and Ukrainian labour cannot help Polish demand.

In the event, harvesting of the Rabi crop is expected to take a much longer time and get extended to June or even July. If things are not speeded up, and if procurement of foodgrains by state agencies does not pick up pace, farmers will in all probability be underprepared for the Kharif sowing season. (Inputs from R. Ramakumar, Devinder Sharma and the FAO).